China issues 22 billion Yuan in local government bonds

China's Ministry of Finance will issue 22.1 billion yuan (3.51 billion U.S. dollars) in bonds on behalf of local governments on Friday in a bid to ease their financing pressures and boost the slowing economy. On Aug. 17, the ministry will auction off 22.1 billion yuan in five-year local government bonds on behalf of Tianjin municipality and the city of Xiamen, as well as Jiangxi, Shandong, Henan and Hunan provinces, according to a statement posted on the ministry's website. The bonds will become tradable on Aug. 24, the statement said, Chinese news agency (Xinhua) reported. Local governments are prohibited from issuing bonds directly, with the exception of Shanghai municipality, the Shenzhen special economic zone and the coastal provinces of Zhejiang and Guangdong.